Graduating taper 5 stone demantoid garnet ring, design help please

[Lovinggems]

Hello all

I''ve been searching for small demantoid garnets to make a 5 stone ring and it proved to be a difficult task. I will now go for a graduate look instead with the following size garnets:

3.3mm, 4.6mm, 5.2mm, 4.7mm, 3.3mm.

Opinions on the proportion/design will be greatly appreciate!

Metal choice - white gold? maybe with a yellow gold scroll gallery?

Design ideas? I think I would like pointy claws.

 

[ma re]

It would probably be good to place the smallest ones a bit further away from the center three, as they're quite a bit smaller in diameter. I'd think about a band with a raised edge (edge slightly higher off the finger than the middle section of the band), to give the stones some more protection if they'll be set in prongs. The band itself can taper in size, but doesen't have to. Two tone sounds good for this project.

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/20/2009 4:45:24 AM
Author: ma re
It would probably be good to place the smallest ones a bit further away from the center three, as they''re quite a bit smaller in diameter. I''d think about a band with a raised edge (edge slightly higher off the finger than the middle section of the band), to give the stones some more protection if they''ll be set in prongs. The band itself can taper in size, but doesen''t have to. Two tone sounds good for this project.

Thanks Mr Mare

Maybe I should try to find bigger stones 4 to 4.2mm?

 

[ma re]

Either that, or set the small ones a bit further, down the band - it could still be very nice and interesting, cause no one says that graduating gem rings need to have even spacing between all stones. You can connect them with some design elements (you mentioned scroll gallery, but why not have some on the front).

 

[chrono]

I’ve seen demantoids set in white gold and they look scrumptious. Yours look to be very green without any yellow, therefore a white metal will be fine if that is your preference. If you want the ring to look evenly tapered, you can look for smaller middle stones; downgrade from 4.6 mm to somewhere around 4.2 mm. Alternatively, you can look for larger end stones of around 4.0 mm, but the effect of the tapering will be less obvious.

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/20/2009 6:47:11 AM
Author: ma re
Either that, or set the small ones a bit further, down the band - it could still be very nice and interesting, cause no one says that graduating gem rings need to have even spacing between all stones. You can connect them with some design elements (you mentioned scroll gallery, but why not have some on the front).

Thank you for the suggestions Mr Ma Re, I''ll try and find some photos with what you suggested.

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/20/2009 7:58:38 AM
Author: Chrono

I’ve seen demantoids set in white gold and they look scrumptious. Yours look to be very green without any yellow, therefore a white metal will be fine if that is your preference. If you want the ring to look evenly tapered, you can look for smaller middle stones; downgrade from 4.6 mm to somewhere around 4.2 mm. Alternatively, you can look for larger end stones of around 4.0 mm, but the effect of the tapering will be less obvious.

I asked the vendor if they can provide a photo with stones in the above sizes so I can picture what they look like together, if it doesn''t look good I''ll have to ask them to source larger end stones.

Here''s a photo of the 5.2mm and 3.3mm together, maybe it''ll look nice with the 4.7mm in between...

 

[chrono]

LG,
I love your demantoids.

They are just the perfect shade. Does he have anything 4.7 mm (even if it’s a different gemstone) to put together with these 4 demantoids to get a feel how the entire set will look size-wise?

 

[MakingTheGrade]

That''s a gorgeous green! Hope you can find the right stones, I think it''ll look stunning in the end!

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/20/2009 12:14:14 PM
Author: Chrono
LG,
I love your demantoids.

They are just the perfect shade. Does he have anything 4.7 mm (even if it’s a different gemstone) to put together with these 4 demantoids to get a feel how the entire set will look size-wise?

Hi Chrono, I asked for a photo as I don''t have those size stones on hand to make my own comparsion. Might take a few days though as they said they''re pretty busy. I''d rather see the sizes together first than having to return the small pair, it''s a hassle and expensive to do so from Australia.

 

[Lovinggems]

Thanks MTG!

Date: 8/20/2009 12:34:41 PM
Author: MakingTheGrade
That''s a gorgeous green! Hope you can find the right stones, I think it''ll look stunning in the end!

 

[Lovinggems]

Here''s the size comparison photo.

 

[Barrett]

Oh LG those stones are so sweet! The green looks just about right! Sorry i can''t help with any design ideas..but luv the stones

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/22/2009 7:27:32 AM
Author: amethystguy
Oh LG those stones are so sweet! The green looks just about right! Sorry i can''t help with any design ideas..but luv the stones

Thanks amguy. Btw the top stone is from Gemline (I already have one of the stone on hand and it''s beautiful) and the others are from Artcutgems (they look very promising).

 

[Barrett]

I must say LG..the color is so bright and bold on those stones..WOW..really stands out

 

[chrono]

I’ll do the green orange green. The ones on the right (with the purple?) just doesn’t seem to “flow”, size wise.

 

[m76steve]

i think ur demis are quite nice-i have a demi pendent still in progress but in my designs i prefer a more symetrical look in yellow gold-the yellow compliments the green & slight yellow in some of the stones. depending on how u place the stones ur eyes will follow as small to large-left to right-small in center-large stones on the edges-arange stones so as to make ur eyes work to see the detail of the arrangement & the stones detail. demantoids can b very sweet to see & enjoy-my 2 cnts...

 

[ma re]

OK, this might be a bit of a wild idea, but how about:
- setting the largerst in a N/S semi bezel
- setting two middle-size ones in E/W semi bezels
- and setting two small ones in double bezels
?

What that would do is make the largest stone more obviously larger than the next two, but since they''d all be in semi bezels there would still be a connection in design. And double bezels on the small ones would make them seem much larger, i.e. closer in size to the others. Hope this makes sense.

You can also set the "big three" in prongs and bezel (or double bezel) the small ones, or even set the small ones in between the largest and middle-size ones (of course, that wouldn''t be a graduated design, but still doesen''t sound bad).

 

[marcy]

I can''t think of any other setting suggestions but I love the color and I also vote for WG. I can''t wait to see your finished project.

Marcy

 

[litebrite]

This sounds like a fun project. I think a 5 stone bypass ring would be amazing and allow you to have more or less space between the stones as needed. I made a crude drawing in Paint, forgive me I draw much better than this but lack access to a scanner. Also I would check out Diana vincent''s work as inspiration, esp the 3 stone bypass rings. Diana Vincent

I am looking forward to seeing the final project.

 

[Lovinggems]

Thanks again amguy, they also look wonderful next to dark purples.

Thanks marcy!

Chrono I have no choice, regarding the 2 midde stones, mine are also 4.6 and 4.7mm, although not as noticeable because essentially they are both dark green, unlike the spess and sapphire (one bright and one dark) in the photo.

MSteve thank you for your comments and do post your demi-pendent once it's complete!

Thanks Mr Ma Re and Litebrite for your design suggestions, Mr Ma Re your design idea echoes LB's suggestion, are you doing design courses?

 

[Lovinggems]

How about a 5 stone James Meyer ring? Here''s Upgradable''s 3 stone ring? Though I''m a bit worry the bezel will diminish the fire of the garnets.

 

[chrono]

LG,
That JM design would be gorgeous. I’m thinking with it being an open bezel, you are probably not going to see its sparkle diminish.

 

[ma re]

I don't think that JM design would lack sparkle, but I wouldn't expect any full bezel to show a lot (if any) fire i.e. dispersion. And that's something to consider when it comes to demantoids as they're among the stones with the highest levels of diepersion which is quite a rare thing in colored stones. The reason why that might happen is because a full bezel could hide a large part of the crown facets, and those are the most responsible for dispersion showing in any material - generally, the higher the crown, the more obvious dispersion.

Oh, no I've never taken a design course, I'd have to improve my drawing skills greatly before trying that out. But never say never

I like Litebrite's idea of a bypass ring which really is similar to some of mine, but I'm thinking semi-bezels and bezels, while bypass is another thing.

P. S. You know those victorian three stone rings with stones set vertically (one small stone above and one below a center stone)? How about doing that with your biggest stone and the two small ones, while adding two middle ones as side stones? Could be nice.

 

[Lovinggems]

Chrono I wonder if I should email James Meyer and ask him about diminishing dispersion with an open bezel (re what Mr Ma Re posted), even though I am not yet sure that I am going with his design. If I have more funds I would like a Van Craeynest ring or pendant with the spare garnet.

 

[Lovinggems]

Date: 8/25/2009 8:14:00 AM
Author: ma re
I don''t think that JM design would lack sparkle, but I wouldn''t expect any full bezel to show a lot (if any) fire i.e. dispersion. And that''s something to consider when it comes to demantoids as they''re among the stones with the highest levels of diepersion which is quite a rare thing in colored stones. The reason why that might happen is because a full bezel could hide a large part of the crown facets, and those are the most responsible for dispersion showing in any material - generally, the higher the crown, the more obvious dispersion.

Oh, no I''ve never taken a design course, I''d have to improve my drawing skills greatly before trying that out. But never say never

I like Litebrite''s idea of a bypass ring which really is similar to some of mine, but I''m thinking semi-bezels and bezels, while bypass is another thing.

P. S. You know those victorian three stone rings with stones set vertically (one small stone above and one below a center stone)? How about doing that with your biggest stone and the two small ones, while adding two middle ones as side stones? Could be nice.

Thank you for the information regarding crown facets and dispersion. Do you use computer software to do designs? That way you don''t really have to draw.

I think your semi bezel idea is sort of like the Diana Vincent ring B posted, although not traditional, the middle stone is set north south, side stones set east west.

 

[ma re]

Date: 8/25/2009 9:17:00 AM
Author: Lovinggems

Thank you for the information regarding crown facets and dispersion. Do you use computer software to do designs? That way you don''t really have to draw.

I think your semi bezel idea is sort of like the Diana Vincent ring B posted, although not traditional, the middle stone is set north south, side stones set east west.

I''m afraid that I''m equally knowledgable about computer design software as I am about drawing

Just can''t transfer an image of a 3D object to the paper (or computer screen for that matter). I actually don''t do designs, but just come up with some every now and then, to the surprise (or horror) of PS''ers

Some of my ideas are actually usable, LOL.

Yes, I see the resemblence of that ring to what I imagined (which is something only I can really see

), but I never came up with a bypass thing which could be a good element for this project. Reason - bypass ring could allow more light to enter the stone (more than traditional semi bezels). Dispersion could also be brought out more that way.

 

[chrono]

LG,
Yes, it’s a good idea to bring up this question with JM. While I get weak in the knees looking at the VC settings, my wallet also feels weak at the pricetag.

I also like the swirly bypass setting a lot as well. I think it’ll look great with the demantoids.

 

[m76steve]

lovinggems-i have a pic of my demi pendent-not compl as yet but u can see what i have done w/my stones-my 2cnts...

 

[litebrite]

Date: 8/25/2009 8:14:00 AM
Author: ma re

P. S. You know those victorian three stone rings with stones set vertically (one small stone above and one below a center stone)? How about doing that with your biggest stone and the two small ones, while adding two middle ones as side stones? Could be nice.

I was also thinking about this as I saw some bypass settings with 3 stones set above a slim channel of diamonds. But the way I was picturing it was w/ the two medium stones N and S of the center stone and the smaller stones on the E and W so that it looks like a star. But the problem is that since the stones are not all of equal size it might look awkward if you don't have the right setting. I suspect the star in either orientation would need a fair amount of metal showing to get the right balance.

Maybe if OP can take photos of it with different geometric shapes

I did a mockup of the idea I had for an art deco type ring just to give you an idea. Obviously it would be slimmer and more refined in real life. And please ignore the grey blob to the left. I was trying to give kind of a fluted edge ( like this scalloped shape: } ) with the eraser tool. I swear I draw better than this IRL.